1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates to electronic communication devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to connectors used to attach a communications line to a computer and which are compliant with one or more standards.
2. The Background Art
Telecommunications services have become an integral part of modern society. The number of telephones in the United States alone exceeds 150 million. Moreover, communications within an organization between people and machines further increases the size of the communications network. The vast majority of the communications devices now in use require a wired connection to a communications line. Such communications devices include, for example, telephones, facsimile machines, modems, and local area network (LAN) adapters. Wireless communications, however, are becoming more commonplace in many instances.
In order to conveniently attach a communications line to a communications device, standard connectors have been promulgated. The most popular of these connectors is known in the art as the RJ-xx series of connectors. Of the RJ-xx series of connectors, the RJ-11, RJ-12, and RJ-45 connectors are widely used. The RJ-11 connector comprises a six contact plug and a corresponding jack which is standardized in the industrialized world. The conventional six contact RJ-11 connector has the desirable attributes of having both low cost and high reliability.
The RJ-xx series of connectors, mostly the RJ-11 connector, is commonly used to attach a communications device such as a telephone, facsimile machine, or a modem (all of which may be integrated into a single device) to a communications line. Such devices are becoming smaller, so small that one or more dimensions of the customary RJ-11 jack, also referred to as a receptacle, is larger than a corresponding dimension of communications device. For example, communication devices which comply with the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA), also referred to as PC Card, standards have dimensions of about 2.1 inches by about 3.4 inches with a thickness of only 3.5 mm, 5 mm, 8 mm, or 10.5 mm. Such small communications devices cannot incorporate customary RJ-xx series receptacles but still require compatibility with RJ-xx series plugs in order to attach to a communications line.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,183,404 to Aldous provides several schemes for providing a miniature RJ-11 compatible receptacle. Disadvantageously, many of the schemes set forth in Aldous leave the electrical contacts exposed to the surrounding environment. Thus, a user may come in contact with the electrical contacts of the plug, which in the U.S. may carry more than 80 volts. Further, since the contacts of the RJ-11 plug are exposed, the contacts may be inadvertently shorted together. Thus, the scheme included in the Aldous reference presents a danger of electrical shock and electrical short circuit. Moreover, some of the receptacle schemes disclosed in the Aldous reference are particularly prone to breakage and damage because of inherently weak structures.
Thus, it would be an advance in the art to provide a miniaturized communications connector which overcomes these drawbacks.
In view of the above described state of the art, the present invention seeks to realize the following objects and advantages.
It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a communications line receptacle for use with a miniaturized communications device wherein the electrical contacts are shielded or isolated from the surrounding environment.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a miniaturized communications line connector which is resistant to breakage and which can be stored out of the way when not being used.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a communications line receptacle which is readily replaceable if broken.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a communications card which can be readily adapted to meet various communications standards.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a communications card which can provide wireless communications.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide communications line receptacles which allow one or more RJ-xx series plugs to be connected to a communications card while the external dimensions of the communications card meet an established standard when not being used and also such that the communications line receptacles occupy minimal space in the communications card.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become more fully apparent from the description and claims which follow, or may be learned by the practice of the invention.
The present invention provides an apparatus for receiving an RJ-xx series plug and making electrical connection with at least two conductors on the plug and conveying any signals on the conductors to a communications device such as a telephone, facsimile machine, modem, local area network adapter, or some other device.
The apparatus includes a body, also referred to as a body means. A recess, or recess means, is provided on the body. In some embodiments the recess means preferably includes an open first end and a closed second end. In other embodiments, the recess means preferably includes open first and second ends. The recess means preferably has dimensions such that the plug is closely received therein. A means is also provided for releasably engaging the plug such that the plug is releasably held in the recess.
At least first and second electrical conductors are provided in the recess. Each of the electrical conductors are positioned such that they have electrical continuity with the electrical contacts in the plug when the plug is received into the recess. A means for conveying any electrical signal present on the electrical contacts to the communications device is also provided.
A replaceable direct access arrangement unit allows the communications card to be interfaced with telephone systems, or other communications systems, which may each require adherence to a different standard. When necessary, a user merely replaces an existing direct access arrangement unit with another direct access arrangement unit which is compatible with the wired telephone system or the wireless communications system that is available to the user.
Also preferably included with the recess means is an expandable means for isolating the contacts in the plug from electrical continuity with an object in a surrounding environment such that passage of current from one or more of the electrical contacts to an object present in the surrounding environment is prevented. The expandable means is located at the second end of the recess and is preferably a stretchable membrane. The expandable means expands to accommodate a plug received in the recess and tends to return, and can be returned by a user, to a position within the thickness of the body when not being used so the apparatus assumes a compact configuration.
Embodiments of the present invention include receptacle modules which receive an RJ-xx series plug. One preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a means for holding the body which receives the RJ-xx series plug. The means for holding the receptacle body or the receptacle module can be easily installed in and removed from the communications device by the user. The present invention allows the body to be retracted into and extended from the communications device while still allowing easy removal and replacement of the body making up the receptacle module. Another preferred embodiment of the present invention includes means for pivotally rotating the body into and out of the communications device such that the body is substantially entirely within the communications device when not being used and the body is rotated to a position where the recess which receives the plug is accessible to the user when desired.